CURRENT GARDEN LORE. 



567 



judgment in each case. The best time to thin fruits is 

 as early as the work can be done with ease and satisfac- 

 tion. In thinning grapes it is usual to cut out a portion 

 of the bunches ; but those who raise Black Hamburgs or 

 other hothouse grapes are in the habit of cutting out 

 about half the berries from each bunch when they are 

 about the size of peas, using sharp-pointed scissors for 

 the work. After such thinning the grapes grow very 

 large, and present a very attractive appearance in the 

 bunch. It is in this way that the wonderful fruit exhib- 

 ited at our horticultural shows is grown. It is not custom- 

 ary to thin small-fruits, though there is reason to believe 

 that they would be better for it ; but it is not likely that 

 it would pay, unless for specimens for competition at the 

 horticultural shows, — Mass. Ploughman. 



The Hop in Gardens. — We lose much picturesque 

 beauty in gardens by ignoring vines like the hop because 

 they are "common." I remember a gnarled apple tree on 

 the fringe of a beautiful pleasure-ground, over which the 

 hop had spread its vigorous shoots, and it would have been 

 difficult to discover a prettier bit of free and picturesque 

 growth. Like the ivy, the hop makes a happy contrast 

 to varieties of Clematis Jackmanni, the mass of deep 

 green leaves intensifying the color of the rich abundance 

 of deep-blue clematis flowers. Nor is its charm confined 



Wooden Vases. 



Hop-Covered Arch. 



merely to summer. As autumn approaches the plant car- 

 ries rich clusters of golden yellow hops, an additional 

 beauty of no mean kind. We can judge of the rich 



beauty that a common climber can give when once well 

 established, by a glance at the hop-covered arch below. 

 The Japanese hop has been much used for covering arbors 

 and trellises. The growth 



made is surprisingly r -j 



rapid. The bunches of \ ^ / 



flowers are larger, and, \ / 



therefore, the plant has \ , s ,n / 



an advantage for the gar- M 



den. — The Garden. i | j.^ 



Vases and Vase- \ i / 



Plants. —One of t h e \ ~ / 



great summer attractions \ ^ jo in / 



of Lincoln Park, Chicago, 

 is the large number of 

 vases, which in June are 

 a pyramid of bloom and 

 foliage, and retain their 

 beauty all summer long. 

 Nearly all are of wood, 

 and are made on the 

 place. The simple wood- 

 en boxes' are far more satisfactory than iron ones, and 

 the plants grow so rapidly that they are soon hidden 

 from sight. The soil for vases and boxes must be of 

 medium weight. If too heavy, it turns into mud when 

 heavily watered, and then bakes into brick ; if too light, 

 it does not retain moisture long enough. Nearly all the 

 vases are of the style shown in the accompanying figure. 

 The object of the upper box is to givt the pyramidal 

 form to the vase, and in late summer, when the vines 

 trail to the ground, the vase presents the appearance of a 

 tall pyramid of foliage and flowers, without any part of 

 the wood showing. Of course, the filling of the different 

 vases varies considerably, but the general arrangement 

 is as follows : In the upper box, which is 2 feet in di- 

 ameter at the top, 15 inches at the bottom, and 12 inches 

 deep, are some of the larger geraniums. Around these 

 a mixture of silver-leaved geraniums and cinerarias, in- 

 terspersed with smaller geraniums, are planted ; then 

 come a few plants of Calceolaria anmta, double sweet 

 alyssum, Verbetia hybrida, Petunia hybrida, ivy- 

 leaved geraniums ( these for immediate effect only, as 

 they do not hold out well all summer), and around the 

 edge double nasturtiums (also for immediate effect), lo- 

 belias, and sometimes a few marguerites. In the bottom 

 box, which is 3 feet across the top, 30 inches at the bot- 

 tom, and 12 inches deep, the first row around the center 

 is of tall geraniums, but not so large that they will over- 

 grow the center. Then follows much the same collection 

 as the upper box held, with the exception of the running 

 plants. For plants to hang over the edge of the lower 

 box, Alaitrandia Barclayana is used. , It makes a thick 

 mass of foliage, and flowers freely all summer long. 

 Another plant that is used very freely in this positioti is 

 the single-flowered nasturtium. It grows rampantly and 

 flowers copiously. German ivy (senecio) is also much 

 used to add to the mass of foliage, as are the vincas, both 

 green and variegated. Sometimes Lophospermum scan- 



